Written by Michael Thervil
Saturday’s game between the Houston Dynamo vs the Utah Royals was a game that left many Dynamo fans frustrated and angry. And the reason for this was because of the calls and lack thereof from the referees that were on the pitch. Dynamo fans felt that some of the calls were “petty” and that some of the calls were not even being “called” at all – especially when it came to their beloved team. There was one time in the match that when a Dynamo player was aggressively pushed down to the ground by one of the Utah Royal players, that same Dynamo player got up and returned the knockdown to the same Utah Royal player who was playing aggressively.
Yes, it was an aggressive game, but it didn’t become that way until the second half as the first half could be considered a “slow build” with the Utah Royals scoring a point in the second half of the first quarter. The Houston Dynamo’s took a total of 18 shots to the Utah Royals 8 that’s nearly double the shots taken by the Utah Royals. Both teams fared equally when it came to the number of shots on target – 4 apiece. The Houston Dynamo led as usual when it came to having ball possession 72% of the time compared to the Utah Royals 28%.
The Houston Dynamo’s also took the lead when it came to passes when compared to the Utah Royals with a whopping 609 passes to the Utah Royals 241. The Houston Dynamo’s also had a pass accuracy rate of 88% to the Utah Royals 77%. The Utah Royals acquired 10 fouls while the Houston Dynamo led with 12 fouls. Although no red cards were issued throughout the game; the high level of aggression brought to the pitch from both teams resulted in yellow cards being issued resulting in the Dynamo’s getting 1 to the Royals 3.
The Houston Dynamos received 1 offsides call, Royals none. Lastly, the Houston Dynamo’s got 7 corners to the Utah Royals 3. In all it was a great game played by the two teams that resulted in a lot of boos from the crowd; at one point someone from the crowd threw an entire hot dog onto the field to illustrate his disgust with the call or lack of calls by the referees. The next Houston Dynamo game will be held at Shell Energy Stadium on August 31, 2024, at 7:30pm against the Los Angeles FC. The current win probability for the Houston Dynamo’s stands at 19% with a win probability for the Los Angeles standing at 59% with a 22% chance of a draw between the two teams.
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